When cockpits are invaded by continuous, dense, blinding smoke that turn airplanes into unguided missiles, the results are well known to be catastrophic and fatal for passengers and crew. None creates an unsafe condition faster than a pilot blinded by continuous, opaque smoke. And none occurs as frequently as smoke in the cockpit. According to the Air Line Pilots Association, airliners make an unscheduled or emergency landing due to smoke in the cockpit on an average of once per day.
What is true for a cockpit is equally true for any operator station where the operator's ability to see the instrument panel when smoke invades the operator's station depends on the safe operation or orderly shutdown of critical processes, such as occur in a nuclear power station, submarine and similar operator stations.